Tequila Lime Shrimp

Easy shrimp seasoned with fragrant spices and spiked with tequila, takes weeknight sauteed shrimp from ordinary to amazing in less than 10 minutes!

I'm not much of a tequila drinker, but cooking with tequila... well let's just say I don't object to boozy shrimp. The alcohol actually cooks out so you won't get intoxicated eating this, but the flavor is spot on. I also add some red pepper flakes to give the shrimp a little spice. 

You can serve this over salad, brown rice, cilantro lime cauliflower "rice" or make some guacamole, heat up some corn tortillas and turn them into shrimp tacos (SO GOOD)! Any brand of tequila will work, I went with George Clooney's Casamigos Tequila just because... (wink wink). Enjoy the shrimp!!

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Spiralized Mexican Sweet Potato and Chicken Casserole

If you're looking for new recipes to make using your spiralizer, this one's for you! This Mexican inspired casserole is made with spiralized sweet potatoes, shredded chicken, black beans and corn in a delicious guajillo pepper sauce topped with melted Pepper Jack cheese – SO good, and the portions are very generous!

I've been experimenting with my Paderno Spiralizer, last week I spiralized broccoli stems with turned out awesome in this Spiralized Beef and Broccoli dish. This week I decided to spiralize a sweet potato. Normally I simply roast them, but my friend and brainstormed thinking about what else to do with it and came up with this dish.

The sauce is AMAZING, a recipe she got from her Mexican friend made from dried guajillo peppers which are very mild in heat. If you want this spicy, you could add some chipotle en adobo to the sauce as well. If you cant find dried guajillo chili peppers, I suggest using 2 to 3 tbsp chipotle chilis in adobo sauce in it's place although it will be spicier.

The quickest way to make this is using leftover chicken. I usually have shredded chicken on hand that I make in the slow cooker, you can see that recipe here or boil it 10 minutes on the stove as mentioned in the recipe below.

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Creamy Lentil Soup

A creamy bowl of lentil soup – made with cumin, cilantro and potato to thicken it is the perfect way to warm up on a cold November night.

When I was a kid, most of our meals started with a bowl of soup. Lentil soup was often on the menu; because I was such a picky eater, the only way Mom got me to eat it was by pureeing it in the blender – I loved it!

As an adult, I'm no longer picky and I love lentils every which way, but I still find a bowl of this creamy pureed soup comforting, especially on a cold night. This makes a great first course, or serve it with avocado, rice and salad on the side to make it a meal. This is perfect for meatless Mondays if you use vegetable broth, gluten-free and leftovers are perfect for lunch – enjoy!

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Quinoa Fiesta Enchilada Bake

Quinoa, black beans, corn, cilantro and green chiles covered with a quick homemade enchilada sauce and baked in the oven with cheesy goodness topped with avocado, cilantro and scallions.

Perhaps because I'm enchilada obsessed, this is my FAVORITE way to eat quinoa – perfect for Meatless Mondays!! You can make this ahead, then bake when ready to eat, and leftovers (without the avocado) are just as good as the day you made it which is perfect to pack for lunch. Plus, this is protein packed – over 17 grams per serving!

To make this freezer friendly, assemble up to topping with the cheese. You can put this in the oven frozen, bake until hot in the center and the cheese is melted about 35 to 40 minutes.

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Crock Pot Sazon Pork Chops with Peppers, Olives and Potato

These pork chops are seasoned with Latin spices and slow cooked in a flavorful sauce with tomatoes, olives, peppers and potatoes. They literally fall of the bone when they come out of the slow cooker!
I love to serve them with just a little brown rice on the side, but totally optional!

My house was a little divided on this recipe. My husband thought it was good but not great, but my oldest daughter Karina thought it was AMAZING as she put it. I really liked this a lot too, and it was my first time making pork chops in the slow cooker believe it or not but won't be my last.

I weighed the pork off the bone and got 4 oz cooked, so that is how I calculated these since they are not always the same size and the bones vary in size. If you go with boneless chops, that about 5 oz raw for each one.

And since so many are asking, I have the 6 Quart Hamilton Beach Set 'n Forget Programmable Slow Cooker. I love it because you can adjust the time you want it to cook, and it automatically turns to warm when it's done. It also has a probe for meat that automatically shuts off when done. I hated my old crock pot, it burnt everything and my food had a weird taste. This crock pot is so great, I actually own two!

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Turkey Picadillo Stuffed Sweet Plantains

These sweet plantains are baked in the oven and then stuffed with a savory turkey picadillo filling and topped with cheese – pretty hard to resist! Similar to a Puerto Rican Pastelón which is really more of a plantain lasagna, instead these are made as individual boats which are easy to make, filling and perfect as a main dish.

If you're not very familiar with plantains, they are similar to bananas only they need to be cooked. Green plantains are usually meant for salty chips or tostones, but when the plantains are very ripe, almost black, that's when they are at their sweetest! That's what you want here, not yellow because they won't be sweet and soft enough. They should be soft and the skin almost black (see photo below in the directions).

The recipe calls for 6, but as you see here I made the full amount of picadillo and only baked two, and froze the meat for another day. So if you are worried this makes too much, you can easily make what you need and freeze the rest. Hope you enjoy!

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Weeknight Skillet Sazon Chicken Tenders

This simple, kid-friendly chicken dish is quick and easy to make for any night of the week – ready in under 15 minutes!

When Karina, my oldest daughter (and the pickier of the two) was younger, and I was making something spicy I knew she wouldn't eat, I used to quickly whip up this dish. Nothing fancy, it was simple and easy with ingredients I always had on hand.

Funny because once she went off to college I never made it again. Recently I ask her which of my recipes she likes most, this one is in her list of top 10. Considering how much she likes it and how quick and easy it is to make, I figured I'd have to share it with you all here. I always served it for her over rice with avocado but you can serve it over farro, quinoa or any grain you prefer. I've also taken the leftovers and shredded them in my blender for amazing shredded chicken to use in fajitas and quesadillas.

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Homemade Sazon Seasoning Mix

 

Making your own Sazon spice blend is EASY to do – and the best part, no MSG!

Sazon is like the magic spice blend in many of my Latin dishes. It's commonly found in the supermarket in small envelopes that you add to stews, beans, rice, etc. It gives yellow rice that yellow color and basically makes anything taste good! Goya is the most popular brand, but I stopped buying it years ago when I realized it had MSG, and started using Badia Sazon, but it's not easy to find so now I make my own which I keep stored in a small spice jar, so instead of using a packet of sazon, I use one and a half teaspoons of this in it's place.

The key ingredient in this spice mix is ground annatto (achiote), the spice that gives yellow rice that yellow color. Annatto is derived from the seeds of achiote tree. In India it's referred to as sindoor, and in the Philippines, it is called atsuete. I can find it in hispanic markets, but you can also find it on Amazon. If you can't find this, turmeric would be a good substitute.

What do I make with Sazon? I always season my wings with it, I use it on my grilled chicken wings, in Mom's Chicken and Rice, Sofrito Chicken Stew, Chicken and Lentil Soup, Arroz con Gandules, and many more dishes! Tomorrow I will share one of my daughter's favorite dishes with this spice.

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Lomo Saltado (Peruvian Beef Stir Fry)

For all the meat and potato lovers out there, this healthier spin on a classic Peruvian stir-fry dish combines two of my favorite cuisines – Latin and Chinese! Chinese cuisine in Peru, referred to as "Chifa", is embedded in the Peruvian culture where you'll find a wonderful fusion of flavors, colors, textures utilizing Chinese and Peruvian ingredients.

I took one of Peru's most emblematic dishes, "Lomo Saltado" and lightened it up a bit – without losing any of it's amazing flavor. This dish is made with strips of sirloin seasoned with cumin, stir fried with tomatoes, red onion, soy sauce, cilantro and finished with french fries – what a combination right? Well trust me, it works!

In Peru they use a yellow pepper called aji amarillo, but it's not commonly found here in the states, so I subbed it with a jalapeno and added mini yellow peppers in their place. Rather than frying my potatoes, I baked my fries in the oven until golden and crisp, seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic powder – SO good! You'll want to make these with everything!

In Peru, they also serve this dish with rice, but I personally find it filling with just the potatoes plus I add a slice of avocado on the side, it's perfect.

Now, for those of you who have totally written off potatoes from your diet because you think they are bad for you, I'm here to tell you they are actually good for you! There's lots of misconceptions about potatoes but the truth is they are not the carb devil everyone thinks they are! The fact is, potatoes are a whole food – that is food in it's natural state, nothing processed or refined. In fact, one medium-size, skin-on potato is just 110 calories, has no fat, sodium or cholesterol, and it provides 45 percent of your daily value of vitamin C and has more potassium than a banana! It's also rich in fiber, potassium and magnesium, which are all listed as shortfall nutrients in the American diet. So don't blame the potato – it's often the preparation and toppings that add fat and calories.  Plus, they are naturally gluten free and part of a clean eating diet! You can see more potato nutrition facts here.

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Chicken Ropa Vieja

This Cuban inspired dish is made with shredded chicken breast cooked in the crock pot, then sauteed with bell peppers, onions, cumin and lots of Latin flavor!

Cuban cuisine is a favorite of mine and Ropa Vieja, which translates as "old clothes" is a dish I love. It's traditionally made with shredded skirt steak, and served over white rice and fried plantains.

I created this lighter version a few years ago using lean chicken breast instead, sometimes I even use boneless skinless thighs or a combination of both. I like to serve it with baked tostones (plantain chips) and a salad. Leftovers make a delicious burrito bowl (I love Chipotle!) served over brown Cilantro lime rice, Southwestern black bean salad, lettuce and shredded cheese.

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Turkey Taco Lettuce Wraps

This is my go-to turkey taco recipe. It's delicious and light – On nights I want to go low-carb, I forgo the taco shells and use lettuce wraps instead!

This is an oldie from the archives, but since I make this so often I thought I would update the photos just in time for taco Tuesday! It's naturally gluten-free, low-carb, and paleo & dairy-free without the cheese and sour cream. I find the outer leaves of Iceberg lettuce makes the best wraps, it's crisp and pliable and the leaves are large enough to make decent size wraps.

Add your favorite taco fixins such as shredded cheddar, light sour cream, chives, black olives, jalapeno, tomatoes or whatever you like on your tacos. The portions are generous, and if you're kids want shells, you can easily bake a few for them and use the same filling.

Making your own taco seasoning is a healthier alternative to buying packaged taco seasoning, and uses less sodium, no sugar, no preservatives and no msg. It also saves you money if you are on a budget. If you prefer to use the package seasoning, simply replace it with the spices listed here.

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Canned Tuna Ceviche

Transform ordinary canned tuna into a zesty, flavorful lunch with a Latin flair by adding fresh lime juice, cilantro, jalapeño, tomato and avocado – so good!

A high school friend (hi Cynthia!) actually gave me this idea. She had it while vacationing in Guatemala and shared the idea with me when she returned. When I read the email, I thought it was brilliant! It's basically a poor man's ceviche.

Now don't get me wrong, I LOVE a good fresh ceviche made raw fish or seafood. It's actually one of my favorite things to eat. I actually shared a recipe here of Ceviche in Cucumber Cups or this ceviche-like Zesty Lime Shrimp and Avocado Salad. But when you need a quick lunch using pantry ingredients, this is great and it's inexpensive, low-carb, paleo-friendly, dairy-free and gluten-free!

For presentation, I put the ceviche tuna into the can to use as a ring mold, then inverted it onto my plate; completely optional of course! Topped with fresh avocado, this was filling and delicious.

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Easy Crock Pot Chicken and Black Bean Taco Salad

This simple slow cooker chicken taco salad is high in fiber and protein which means it's very satisfying – all for under 300 calories. Trust me, you won't miss the tortillas!

I'm on a salad kick now that Spring has sprung. Last week I whipped this salad up for dinner, and it was so good and simple I knew I had to make it again to share. I basically added chicken breasts and black beans to the slow cooker, seasoning it with taco seasonings and topped it with salsa. Doesn't get easier than that! A few hours later I shredded the chicken and combined everything for this wonderful topping to this salad.

I also whipped up some of my favorite zesty avocado cilantro buttermilk dressing for the perfect salad that's so satisfying and super easy to make.  Try this for taco Tuesday!

And since so many are asking, I have the 6 Quart Hamilton Beach Set 'n Forget Programmable Slow Cooker. I love it because you can adjust the time you want it to cook, and it automatically turns to warm when it's done. It also has a probe for meat that automatically shuts off when done. I hated my old crock pot, it burnt everything and my food had a weird taste. This crock pot is so great, I actually own two!

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Crock Pot Carne Guisada (Latin Beef Stew)

Slow cooked Latin beef stew with baby red potatoes and Latin seasonings. Serve this topped with fresh aji picante – it's is a must and really brightens the flavors and rounds out the dish!

Last week I was on a cruise to the Bahamas from New York having fun in the sun. I was hoping to return to Spring weather but so far March is starting off really cold in New York. This Latin beef stew is the perfect way to warm up and it's a favorite in my home. A bit different than traditional beef stew because the meat and potatoes simmer with light beer, scallions, garlic, tomatoes, cumin, achiote (also known as annato) and spices. If you can't find achiote which is traditionally used in Latin cuisine and can be purchased at any Latin market or on Amazon, no worries, you can use Badia Sazon or even sweet paprika instead. If you prefer to make this without beer, you can replace it with water, it will still taste great.

I usually make it on the stove, but with some minor adjustments I was able to make this in the slow cooker. If you don't have a slow cooker you can see the stove top recipe here. Pictured here I served this over brown rice with some avocado on the side. Enjoy!

And since so many are asking, I have the 6 Quart Hamilton Beach Set 'n Forget Programmable Slow Cooker. I love it because you can adjust the time you want it to cook, and it automatically turns to warm when it's done. It also has a probe for meat that automatically shuts off when done. I hated my old crock pot, it burnt everything and my food had a weird taste. This crock pot is so great, I actually own two!

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Salsa Verde Burgers

Wow, these Salsa Verde Burgers are OFF THE HOOK! If you need a new burger idea that everyone will love, look no further. These burgers are lean with a mean, green kick topped with pepper jack cheese, salsa verde and avocado – delish!

I shared this delicious homemade salsa verde recipe for Better Homes and Gardens on Delish Dish and decided to make these burgers using the salsa for dinner last night. You can also use store bought salsa verde, but trust me, nothing beats homemade!

I made the burgers with both lean beef burgers and chicken burgers since I had both on hand, and I loved them equally.  My husband's not eating carbs this week so he ate two beef burgers without the bun. Whether you make them with lean beef, turkey, chicken, buffalo, black bean patties, veggie burgers... modify them however you wish!

I calculated these with 93% lean beef patties, with the bun and without and with the bun and no cheese. Any other variations you'll have to do on your own – enjoy!
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Cilantro Lime Shrimp

Cilantro and lime make this simple shrimp dish outstanding – and it takes just minutes to make! 

This is an oldie but goodie, a regular in my home. I was making it for dinner the other night and felt the need to re-shoot it. We serve it over rice or with a big avocado and lettuce salad. Enjoy!

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Ceviche in Cucumber Cups and My Tour of the CIA

This very popular Peruvian dish is made with fresh pieces of raw fish (or shellfish) marinated in lime juice, onions and cilantro which slowly causes the fish to "cook", in very much the same way that heating does. The results are bright and refreshing with an opaque appearance and firmed texture of cooked fish. This dish is also gluten-free, paleo friendly and low-carb.

A few weeks ago I went on a fun tour to one of the world’s best professional culinary colleges – the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY. 

Pictured from left to right is me, Jennifer from Bake or Brake, Kita from Pass the Sushi and Russ from The Domestic Man. I loved the tour and meeting new food bloggers – the group was small which was perfect to watch the classes in progress without interfering too much.

Lucky for me, that day they happened to be making ceviche in their Americas cooking class and I got to eat it for lunch. I LOVE a good ceviche, and I order it any chance I get when I go out to eat, so I was excited that they shared this recipe with me.

The good news – this is really easy to make and it looks so impressive if you're having guests over. Their original recipe was made with scallops, but I opted for some fresh Striped Bass which I picked up at my local fish store. You can use any type of ocean fish or shellfish to make ceviche, the only rule of thumb is that it should be as fresh as possible, preferably caught the same day. This would make a wonderful appetizer for Christmas eve if your family likes to have fish. While you can prepare the cucumber cups and the vegetables for the ceviche a few hours ahead, ceviche tastes best when it marinates no more than an hour or two before you serve it.

Funny where life takes you, I went to art school and studied graphic design at Pratt in Manhattan which led me to become a graphic designer/digital photo-retoucher prior to Skinnytaste. I believe those experiences helped me and my love of food photography, but if I was to go back to school now, I would LOVE to attend the CIA or at least take some classes their. They are teaching our next generation of leaders – chefs such as Anthony Bourdain, Duff Goldman, Micheal Simon, Cat Cora, just to name a few are all CIA graduates. I mean, doesn't this chef jacket and hat belong on me?

What's really cool about the school is that all students work in 3-week course rotations, the senior class works at one of three CIA’s restaurants – both the front and back ends. So during our first night there we were served by the graduating students, with meals that the students prepared. We ate at the new French Bocuse Restaurant, and the food was phenominal. The highlight of my meal was watching the students make ice cream in 30 seconds with a hand cranked mixer and dry ice – amazing!

If you're ever in the Hudson Valley, you can go on a group tour and dine at one of their three award winning student-staffed restaurants. And if you're thinking about pursuing a career in the the culinary arts, or have kids that are trying to decide their future, check out the CIA . A 4 year degree is completed in 3 years, they have new classes starting every 3 weeks and offer classes in culinary arts, baking, nutrition, and culinary science. What's more, they boast about their 99% job rate in leadership positions after graduating which is unheard of these days! 

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Chicken and Lentil Soup

This delicious, hearty lentil soup made with chicken, cilantro, cumin and spices is perfect for warming your belly on those cold winter nights. What's more, it's easy to make, economical and very satisfying.

I was in the mood for this last night so I thought it would be a great time to update the photos. I've slightly modified the original recipe which I posted back in 2009, but the results are just as good.

I've been making this soup for years, my family loves it – including my four year old (to my surprise)! It makes a big pot which means plenty of leftovers for lunch. It freezes well and can be reheated with a little water if it gets too thick.

Lentils were actually the first legumes I liked as a kid. My mom would me a similar soup with carrots and celery and since I was picky – she usually pureed mine. I love preparing them because they cook so much quicker than dried beans, and a small amount goes a long way. They are high in protein, Vitamin B, folate and soluble fiber and have twice as much iron as other legumes. You can easily cut this recipe in half or freeze left-overs for lunch which is what I like to do. Chicken breast would work in place of thighs if you prefer white meat. Ground annato (also known as achiote) is commonly used in Latin cuisine, it's used mostly to add color and adds a subtle flavor, but if you can't find it paprika would work instead.

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